DOSE:

1 drop

oral

Amanitas - A. muscaria

(dried)

BODY WEIGHT:

185 lb

After reading parts of Wasson's SOMA, I was curious to try fly agaric for myself, to see what effects it might have. I was a little apprehensive because I'd heard that some people have had less-than-pleasant experiences (nausea, profuse sweating, drowsiness, etc.). But I thought the benefits might outweigh any drawbacks.

I picked a small mushroom, for two reasons: first, they are said to be more active; second, I didn't want to overdo it, not knowing what might happen. I let it dry for a week or so in my closet, which may seem like a strange place, but it had been raining, and I wanted it to dry properly. It shrank considerably; I was able to roll it up into a kind of ball and, after letting it soften in my mouth, swallow it whole. I didn't chew it because I thought I might avoid nausea that way.

I made sure to do it in a secluded spot, a very beautiful spot, called Redwood Grove. I knew that I would be alone there to do anything I pleased: write, sing, laugh, throw up, jump around and talk to trees. However, the trip, if it can be called that, was very mild. I never felt out of control. There were some side effects: I felt a fairly sharp pain in my groin and lower abdomen, but I was able to alleviate it with regular breathing. Also, I noticed that I was sweating more than I would have normally and that my vision was not as acute. Specifically, I couldn't focus on distant objects. At one point, I was hiking out of the grove and saw the moon over the ridge to my right. It appeared to me as a bright blur of light, and I couldn't make out any of its features (the craters and mountains we see as the Man in the Moon). It was just a blob in the sky. Distant lights in houses below were similarly blurry. My vision later corrected itself.

Overall, it was milder and more uneventful than I expected. It's hard for me to say just how it affected me: I don't know that I was any more aware, or that I saw or heard things that I wouldn't have without the mushroom (heightened senses). I think I may have become more contemplative, but that will happen to anyone who spends four hours among Redwood trees. Still, I felt a kind of communion with the natural world, which should happen anytime we consume something that is of the earth but often doesn't.

Exp Year: 2000	ExpID: 4156
Gender: Male
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Dec 25, 2001	Views: 14,071
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Amanitas - A. muscaria (70) : Nature / Outdoors (23), First Times (2), Alone (16)